


Distant Stars Come in Black or Red

by yaknownyan



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Basically Keith coming to terms with his past with Shiro lmao, Canon Compliant, Flashbacks, Heavy Angst, M/M, Mentions of Violence, Pre-Kerberos Mission, Sparring, this is angsty and gay but I hope you like it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-13
Updated: 2017-12-13
Packaged: 2019-02-14 03:09:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,997
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12998565
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yaknownyan/pseuds/yaknownyan
Summary: "Hey, you ok?"Keith blinked, once, twice. Grounding himself and trying to decipher the look on Shiro's face, digesting his words. A hand was placed on his shoulder, and he was suddenly back where he was supposed to be.Worry.He asked a question - answer it.





	Distant Stars Come in Black or Red

**Author's Note:**

> Distant stars  
> Come in black or red  
> I've seen their worlds  
> Inside my head
> 
> (...)
> 
> There's nothing you can say to him  
> He is an outer heart  
> And the space has been broken
> 
> It's broken  
> Our love  
> Broken  
> It's broken
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmJZRt3I9D4

Ever since Zarkon had made his empire known throughout the galaxy, Keith never had a single day at rest. Even during off days like this, he spent most of his time training, fighting the gladiator robot and climbing it's available levels like escalators. 

He didn't know which one he was on, currently. Last time he checked, he was on level 5, and that was about 3 hours ago. His muscles had began to tire him out, a sharp pang on his biceps and calves as he twisted around the bot, ending him with a quick and lucky curve of his blade across it's chest. It fell to the ground in a careless motion, electric sparks flying from its open wound.

Concentration got the best of him, and he only acknowledged another presence when slow and respectful claps echoed along with his pants throughout the room. He turned around, and saw that  Shiro was unhurriedly walking down the steps from the entrance platform.

"If I don't watch out, you'll probably break my record before next week." He joked, "Be careful to not hurt yourself while doing it though."

Keith wiped the sweat on his forehead with the back of his hand and smiled, "I can always just end the simulation." 

"Well, you know what happened last time." He moved his gaze to the gladiator, lying lifelessly on the ground."

Keith shivered at the memory - the time the castle went batshit crazy and tried to kill everyone, "Don't remind me of that." he flicked his wrist, turning his sword back into a bayard, "So, what do you think?"

Shiro pursed his lips and furrowed his eyebrows in concentration, probably replaying Keith's moves on his head and analysing them, "I think your stance is a bit sloppy, but you make up for it with enthusiasm and strength." 

Keith flinched.

The dim familiarity of these words was something he definitely wasn't expecting to remember today. It just reminded me of how they were once said to him, in a similar situation, a long time ago.

A little bit over a year, to be exact. 

He and Shiro had history. It was obvious. You could see flickers of their past in their gestures, and in the way they spoke and acted around each other. Wherever Shiro was, Keith was always right beside him, giving him the support and strength he needed, and vice-versa. 

However, Keith thought that Shiro would show more than mediocre flickers. 

He thought his comeback would completely light up their lost flame.

"Hey, you ok?"

Keith blinked, once, twice. Grounding himself and trying to decipher the look on Shiro's face, digesting his words. A hand was placed on his shoulder, and he was suddenly back where he was supposed to be. 

Worry.

He asked a question - answer it. 

"Yeah... I guess the training was a bit too rough." He lied. And part of him knew that Shiro would not believe him, because it wasn't like him to admit defeat.

Although Shiro still looked a bit weary, he dropped his hand back to his side, nodding in agreement, "Maybe you should rest. I was hoping I could use the bot for training myself."

Keith swallowed. "Sure. Of course. Absolutely." 

He sat back on the steps, grasping his water pouch tightly and taking small sips. Shiro wasn't pleased that he decided to stay for a little bit longer, but he only received a small frown before the black paladin turned his back on him and proceeded to talk to the computer system.

"Commence training sequence - level 5."

Watching Shiro training always left him breathless

The man was a perfect combat machine. He managed to dodge every move, no matter how unperceivable (even from an outsider's point of view, such as Keith's). The gladiator charged at him relentlessly, bloodthirsty. He almost got hit, but was saved by throwing up his forearms defensively, the screeching sound of metal scratching against metal echoing loudly in the room. The machine was taken aback, and Shiro used that as an opportunity to attack it from below, kicking it's shin until it hit the floor. 

Victory only lasted for a short time, however, as the bot quickly sat itself up and ran towards Shiro once again. Shiro ducked and slided on the floor to the left, activating his galra arm on his way and quickly landing one final blow on the gladiator's torso as he sat up. Shattered pieces of machine flew in various directions, before it unceremoniously fell to the ground.

Shiro exhaled, clenching his right fist until the purple hue faded away. Once it did, he stretched his fingers and rolled his shoulders, loudly cracking a few bones. Keith stared at him, dumbfounded. 

"That was amazing. Like always." Keith said at last. And he meant it; he was never a fawner (unlike Lance, who worshipped the ground Shiro walked on in the hopes of being a leader someday), "Can you show me that move, again? The one where you duck and slide?"

Shiro frowned again, "Keith, you already trained a lot today. I don't want you to overwork yourself." 

He offered him a hand, but Keith sat up on his own.

"Come on!" He begged, before looking away bashfully and murmuring "What's wrong with training just like in the old days?" 

The leader seemed to ponder on that for a second; stuck between doing the right thing, or allowing them a moment to reminisce the past. He looked back at Keith, and understood the fact that he had obviously gathered a lot of courage to ask him for this. 

He sighed in defeat, "Fine." Keith practically beamed at his words, "But we'll take it slowly, alright?"

-

This was harder than Keith thought it was going to be. 

"No, no, no." 

Keith got out of his stance, fist clenching and significantly more annoyed than he was to begin with, "What? What was is it this time?!"

Shiro was unaffected, keeping up his patient leader poise like always, "Your hips should sway to the left. You're keeping them stiff."

"But I'm swaying them!"

Shiro shook his head again, unfolding his arms as he walked up from where he was previously watching him from. Keith was ready to protest again, but froze up when careful fingers wrapped around his waist from behind, "Look, just follow my lead, okay?" He murmured, and Keith could practically feel his warm breath on his ear. Shiro kept a strong grip as he lightly moved Keith's hips, swaying them, "Right and left, right and left..."

Keith didn't know if Shiro had realised how compromising this position was for the both of them, or if he just ignored it for the sake of getting the training over with. Or maybe, just maybe, he planned this all along. He turned around to look at him questioningly, but flinched when their noses bumped against each other. 

Shiro's eyes widened as he seemed to have finally taken notice of their closeness. They stood still for a moment, both too shocked to move (Keith, scared of startling Shiro away; Shiro, scared of Keith's reaction). Keith looked down at Shiro's lips just as he moistened them with the tip of his tongue and gulped.

Memories flooded through him like an open faucet -  simulation tests right after lights out, when the guards were off duty. Early workout training routines to take advantage of the empty gym. Long hours of tutoring the night before a test, because he couldn't comprehend quantum physics on his own. A hand of reassurance on his shoulder. Lunches shared together in the same table (the chatter of the cantine echoed in the back of his head). Late night confessions exchanged on rooftops during the dead of the night. Secretly holding hands while walking through the corridors, with a thumb delicately caressing away the calluses on his palm. Want. Precaution. A promise.

He closed his eyes, embracing for impact.

But then Shiro backed off, letting Keith's hips go just as suddenly as he had grabbed them. Keith let out a grunt of frustration when he scratched the back of his neck, averting his gaze, "Alright. I think you got the hang of it."

"Shiro..." He started

"Keith." He cut him off.

"Don't pretend like this is just me." Keith insisted, stepping forwards and grabbing Shiro's wrist, making the black paladin turn around and face him with a reprimanding scowl, "Don't pretend like you weren't just about to..."

"We can't."

"You  _promised_."

"That was a long time ago."

More recollections. The voice of a newsman reporting a tragedy, muffled by the static of a dimly lit TV. Shock. Disbelief. Whispers down the hall spreading lies. Blind swings of fists, followed by the sound of bones breaking and skin being ripped. A cardboard box filled with belongings noisily dangling in the back of a red motorbike. Desert sand weighing down what already felt like heavy lungs. Tears. Heartbreak. Pained screams echoing in the dead of the night.

_Pilot Error. Pilot Error. Pilot Error._

"What are you afraid of?!" Keith snapped, raising his voice and tightening his grip. This surprised Shiro, who froze in place and made no effort to escape his grasp on him, "What, you don't love me anymore?!  _Is that it?!_ "  
  


"Keith..."

Keith ignored him, "Because if that's it, I'll back off! I won't keep insisting on this! But please," He gulped, voice breaking slightly "... _please_ just tell me. Don't push me away again."

A few seconds of silence and hesitance. Then, Shiro cupped his cheek, using his thumb to wipe away a tear Keith didn't even notice streaming down his cheek, "You know that's not it, Keith." 

"Then what is it?!" 

Shiro sighed, "There's a war going on, and we're the soldiers battling in the frontline. I just... I just didn't know if either of us could handle the pain of losing each other if we allowed this..." He gesticulated at the space between them, "To happen."

"I lost you once, Takashi Shirogane." He moved the hand caressing his face to his chest, feeling the way Shiro's hand recoiled in surprise when he felt his heartbeat, and holding it tighter against it, "I lost you once, and I deciphered a whole enigma set by ancient ruins to find you again. I lost you twice, and I crossed the entire cosmos looking for you, going as far as crossing realities. Don't you get it? You never gave up on me, so I will never,  _ever_ , give up on you."

Shiro's expression was unreadable to Keith, and this terrified him. He seemed stern, disappointed, but mostly at lost for words, blinking rapidly in disbelief, quivering his mouth and looking for an appropriate answer. He did not find it, however, and opted to abruptly close the space between them, capturing Keith's lips with his own and swallowing the astonished gasp he slipped out. 

Shiro's lips were assertive. Keith thought he would be the one to take this unhurriedly, but Shiro kissed him with ardour, as if his life depended on it. All previous doubt he had about this man loving him back was gone with the wind,  and he kissed him back with almost as much passion. Hands wandered around previously unchartered skin, metal digging into the naked back under his shirt, and curious fingers dragging along the bumps of muscles littered with faded scars. Keith groaned, and Shiro finally broke up their kiss. 

They looked into each other's eyes through half lidded gazes, exchanging breaths through heavy gasps of air. 

"My biggest regret was not kissing you at the Kerbero's launch." Shiro admitted in a quiet whisper, "I shouldn't have told you to wait for when I got back. I should have just done it."

"Takashi..."

Shiro leaned in again, placing a chaste kiss to Keith's lips. He repeated the process all throughout his face, smiling while leaving light butterfly pecks to Keith's nose, cheeks and eyelids. Keith chuckled in response.

Their old wounds would heal, eventually. 

**Author's Note:**

> HAPPY BIRTHDAY GABBY I HOPED YOU LIKED THIS LATE GIFT LMAO


End file.
